Family feud over control of Mardi Gras float empire heats up again today

Another episode of the only-in-New Orleans family drama over control of the city's Mardi Gras float empire is unfolding this morning in Civil District Court as Blaine Kern Sr., the 84-year-old eccentric, and his son, Barry Kern, again go toe-to-toe to determine who should run the company that provides floats prominent Carnival organizations including Rex, Endymion and Muses.

Rusty Costanza, Times-Picayune archiveBlaine Kern, left, and his son, Barry, right, hold a news conference in October 2010 to announce they have settled their differences.

A state appellate court panel last month overturned Civil District Judge Kern Reese's year-old injunction that handed the reins of Blaine Kern Artists Inc. over to the Carnival mogul's 49-year-old son. The move sent the spat back to Reese for the full evidentiary hearing that begins today.

The merits of the case beyond the injunction have yet to be tried.

Barry Kern sued his father in late 2010, claiming the elder Kern had compromised the 55-year-old business by meddling in its management and sapping its cash reserves.

Barry Kern argued that the company had spiraled into a fiscal crisis after his father began spending lavishly on houses, cars and other luxuries and started ordering up cash advances since he married his fourth wife, Holly Brown-Kern.

Barry, Blaine and Holly are in the courtroom today, as is Sonny Borey, captain of the Krewe of Orpheus. Before they entered, Barry and Blaine failed to greet each another.

"This is not widgets that are bought and sold and consumed at whatever the rate they're consumed at," Reese said in his ruling on the injunction. "This is part of the character and spirit of the city. And it's too important to be left to whim and fancies and irritations and disagreements and familial discord."

Blaine Kern followed Reese's order. But his attorney argued in front of the appeals panel in November that the deal was only a temporary stop gap aimed at lending confidence to parade groups through Mardi Gras 2011.

Judges Terri Love, Daniel Dysart and Max Tobias agreed to remove the injunction and order an evidentiary hearing on it.